Where My Heart Belongs
by LovelyJB
Summary: Christine thinks about Erik on the day of her wedding to Raoul. She remembers the love she felt that could not be, and who her heart will truly always belong to. Rewritten lyrics to The Music of The Night. EC Oneshot.


**I rewrote the lyrics to _The Music of The Night_, so it's the same melody for the song in the story, okay? **

**My first Phantom of The Opera oneshot (yes, it's a oneshot!). Pairing of Erik and Christine of course. :)**

* * *

It was her wedding day. The Countess de Chagny-to-be could hardly wait, the day she had dreamt of had finally come.

The morning was busy. Servants were scrambling everywhere, determined to get the ceremony to be perfect for her and her groom.

She was in the heart of Paris, at the most beautiful church in the country. Her fiancé had chosen it for the view and knowing his bride loved it. The plans were all in order, and the only thing left to do was to get ready and be prepared.

Her bridesmaids tended to her lovingly as they gathered jasmine's from the Vicomte's garden, placing them neatly into her hair. She smoothed down her snow white wedding gown as her friends backed away for her.

Christine beamed at her reflection as she stood in front of the large mirror. She raised her hand to push a lock of auburn gold hair from her face.

"You look beautiful, Christine," one friend spoke, smiling proudly as she clutched her hands together at her cheek. Christine nodded, tilting her head from side to side slowly.

"Yes." She sighed contently. "I want to look my best for the happiest day of my life." Her face lit up as she spoke the last few words, and her friends felt her love and bliss reflect from her. One bridesmaid, Sonja, went up to her from behind. She wrapped her arms around Christine's shoulders, staring at the mirror image.

"You must be so lucky to find such a true love in Raoul." Christine laughed, smiling dreamily.

"As my father used to say," she said softly. "Love comes when you least expect it." The other maidens nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, a knock at the door, turning all their attention. The door opened slightly, and blonde hair and blue feminine eyes peeked in. Christine let out a stunned gasp.

"Meg!" she exclaimed. The girl from the door burst in and leapt into the bride-to-be's arms. The two friends hugged, having not seen each other since Christine and Raoul left the Opera House. They pulled apart, still smiling radiantly. Christine turned around to the other women.

"May I have a minute, please?" she said. She placed an arm on the blonde girl. "Meg is an old friend." The bridesmaids all nodded and one-by-one, they stood up and left, closing the door behind them. Meg beamed at her friend, examining her features.

"I can't believe you are to be married to Raoul," she exclaimed happily. Christine chuckled softly, glancing back at the mirror.

"It's quite a fairytale, isn't it?" Meg nodded. She pulled a basket she was holding into view. It held dozens of flowers, all of different kinds and colours. Christine gasped with astonishment, much to Meg's amusement.

"Mother sends her love," she said, handing her the entire parcel. Christine laughed. She placed the basket on a table and sat down at it, playing and examining each blossom fondly.

Her smile appeared and reappeared at each flower, each one pouring back bittersweet memories from her loved ones back home. God, she missed them so, but she knew this was the life she had chosen, and she would be happy with it. Christine stopped at one flower, her smile disappearing completely and a chill running down her spine. Meg watched curiously.

"What is it, Christine?" she asked. "Is there something wrong?" Christine snapped out of her daze and replaced her faded joy.

"Oh, it's nothing," she replied, her voice slightly higher than usual. She glanced around for a distraction. "Meg, would you be so kind to go see Raoul for me?" Meg smiled mischievously.

"Why is that? Are you curious on how your husband is at this time of day?" Christine blushed, slightly embarrassed at what her friend meant.

Even last night, Raoul was clearly a nervous wreck. He had practiced everything, walking to the aisle, walking from the aisle, how he would hold out his arm to Christine, how he would say his lines. Christine laughed silently.

"No," she replied, rolling her eyes at Meg. "The bride is not to see her groom or else it is bad luck. That's all." Meg was clearly unconvinced, but she just laughed. She stared at Christine for a moment, but then obeyed her orders. She kissed her softly on the forehead and made her way out of Christine's room to the main hall where Raoul, and everyone else, was waiting. She closed the door.

As soon as Meg's footsteps ceased, Christine's smile again vanished and she looked down at the flower in her hand.

It was a rose, a red rose. More beautiful than anything she had seen in a long time, and she knew who it was from.

A black ribbon tied around the neck.

She touched it tenderly, remembering all those memories that she was forbidden to remember.

_A masked man led Christine through a dark and frightening tunnel, his hand locked to hers, not ever thinking of letting go. He pulled her safely behind him, glancing back constantly to reassure her with his eyes._

_His beautiful emerald eyes._

_She could barely see his face; half of it was hidden under that mask, but she knew what was under that mask. The most hideous face she had ever set eyes on. However, she felt the sadness of his eyes relieve all the horror she felt as she stared at him. She did not let go of his hand, nor did she try pulling away from him. _

_She felt safe._

_At last, they came across a familiar ground. He stopped, taking her over to a corner where she could see light. She gasped, relieved to see it, yet her hand did not let go. She turned her head around and looked The Phantom in the face. His hard green eyes softened. For her._

_"Travel up these stairs and you will find the entrance back to your room," he told her. Christine nodded._

_They once again stared into each other's eyes, as if unable to look away. Christine just felt like there was something drawing her towards the Phantom, something haunting yet beautiful at the same time. She reached up her hand and touched his face. He exhaled sharply and closed his eyes at her touch, lost in the moment. Abruptly, he pushed her hand away and took a step back._

_"You must go," he whispered. He turned away to leave, but Christine still did not let go._

_"Wait!" she called out. The Phantom cast a confused look, but obeyed. _

_"What is your name?" Christine asked. The Phantom smiled feebly, not expecting her to ask him such a question. He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it._

_"Erik," he replied. Christine beamed and nodded. At last, she released him, and he then disappeared as quickly as he came. She sighed as she watched him go._

Christine smiled to herself.

"Erik," she muttered. She closed her eyes, realizing she was once again digging up the painful past. She let out a scoff of frustration and stumbled over to the window. She stared out at the clouded sky.

She had taken an oath with Raoul to obey Erik's instructions to forget him and move on with life. She was told to forget those lingering feelings for him, so she could stay with Raoul. By digging up the past, she was to feel that love she had so desperately try to erase from her heart.

Christine clutched the rose to her heart, singing softly to it.

"Faded feeling

strike at past temptations.

Memories stir, and

flow with sweet sensation…"

Christine looked back at the flower in her hand, frowning as she examined the perfect petals. She began to think of Erik again, of his touch. Of his face.

"My heart questions my reasons

Is this what I believe in…?"

She turned her head down at the town below. All the decorations for the wedding were set and ready. Once she was to go down there, the wedding would at last proceed. Something was holding her back from going down there, something that suddenly made her feel afraid to. She turned away from the window, slowly moving around her room. She raised her hands and hugged herself tightly as an eerie breeze passed through into the room.

"Slowly, gently

your voice began to whisper"

Christine blinked a few tears in her eyes as the wind howled to her unspoken words. She glanced over her shoulder back at the window where the clouds suddenly grew dark for a few moments. She sat down at her chair and held up the rose to her face as the petals began to tremble.

"Sadly, faintly

I hear you and surrender

The love I felt so pure

There's no reason I'm not sure…"

She pressed the rose to her bosom as a silent tear escaped her eye.

"And the sorrow that I

left it all behind…

to never hear the music of the night."

Christine closed her eyes sadly.

She had never revealed her feelings to him. She never had the chance to. But she knew how she felt, and how that would affect her future. She looked down at her bare hand, slowly standing up.

"Though I know

I must give my heart and soul to him

I can't give what is no longer mine!"

She tightened her hand into a fist, dropping it at her side.

It hurt, it hurt to remember. To remember Erik's green eyes as they were when Christine finally gave in to him. When their souls combined for the first, and the last time. She let out a soft sob as the bitterness forced a tear.

"In my heart,

that sweet moment

will not die…"

Christine touched her lips thoughtfully, suddenly feel them burning. She frowned as her eyes began to sting, transfixed at her reflection in the mirror.

"And that kiss…

that cherished kiss

lost in time…"

She would never forget that kiss they shared.

_Christine's eyes locked with Erik's once more, as it always did. She forced herself not to glance at Raoul, who was still tied at the gate at the brink of death. _

_Her eyes flickered with sadness as she suddenly realized what Erik must have lived through to become the monster she feared so. He had been scarred, not through his face, but through the agony of life that forbid him happiness. At last when he finally found Christine to love and nurture, she was to be ripped away from him as well. Christine felt a stab at her heart, knowing Erik longed for her more than anything, his key to happiness, and killing Raoul was the only way he thought he could win her hand._

_It was so very wrong._

_Christine shook her head, finally understanding. She began to again feel drawn towards him, wanting to ease the pain, to erase the anguish._

_"Pitiful creature of darkness_

_What kind of life have you known?"_

_She felt the coolness of the water at her knees, but her eyes remained on Erik's hard green pools. Her words seemed to suddenly hit him, making his anger and madness ease. Their eyes hypnotized each other, and Raoul disappeared from both their minds. Christine drew closer and closer._

_"God, give me courage to show you…_

_She stopped in front of him, still with her unblinking eyes. She slipped on the Erik's ring._

_…you are not alone!"_

_As if possessed by a strange force, Christine placed her left hand on Erik's neck and pulled him down to her until their lips touched in a kiss. She felt Erik's mouth tense up with shock. She had not expected the warm sensation she felt as her lips burned against his. She felt a spark inside her heart set alight._

_She had never felt this way before. It was different when she kissed Raoul, something new, something different._

_Something real._

_Christine pulled away to look at his reaction. Erik was still stunned, but he managed a trembling smile. Her heart gave in to her desires once again, and she pulled him down into another kiss. But this kiss… it was more passionate, much more deep, a real kiss._

_Her hand subconsciously cupped his deformed cheek, but she didn't care. She deepened the kiss even more as she felt Erik return it. _

_Once again, they pulled apart and she saw the pain and the happiness light up in his eyes. He began to cry, ripping his eyes away from the woman he loved. As his gaze left, Christine was pulled back into reality and she remembered Raoul. Erik stumbled through the water back to dry land, devastated. _

_"Take her," he muttered to Raoul. "Forgive me. Forget all of this…"_

Christine sighed to herself as her memory faded back to the present. Her heart broke as she knew what she did after that.

She chose Raoul, and choosing him meant that she chose her life.

She chose to have a family with him, in the daylight, in the summertime, in the real world. If she had chosen Erik, she would have stayed in the shadows forever, only ever having him to lean on, only ever having his music.

Christine knew she made the right choice; she chose her freedom. Why was she regretting it so?

She loved Raoul, she did. But her freedom… her freedom _was _music.

She dropped her gaze to the ground, sinking back down into another chair.

"Freedom seldom

visits me in daytime.

Twilight, music

helps open my eyes now…"

Her Angel. Her Angel of Music. Was he really the person she had given her heart to all those years ago? When with him, did he make her feel like she needed no one else when she stared into his eyes?

Christine sighed.

The emptiness she felt when she remembered him, making her wish he was here. She feebly tried smiling as her teardrops landed on the petals of Erik's rose.

"Think of you today

the whole world just melts away

With this passion which I know I cannot fight…"

Her eyes drifted down to the rose. She held it up and smiled again, genuinely.

"The magic

of the music of the night."

Christine took a few deep breaths and squeezed her eyes shut as she suddenly felt so angry with the world. She shot up from her seat and closed the window with a snap, fiery anger and hate gushing through her veins.

"In a place

where illusions can't forbid sweet fate

I give my soul to know if such a place in me!

And let the dream take me where I long to be!"

She stopped the note suddenly, her eyes and expression softening abruptly with melancholy. Her breath grew heavy, feeling so helpless and confused. She dropped the rose, a tear rolling down her cheek.

"Only then…

can we meet

and be…"

All he wanted was to love and be loved, but life denied them a chance. She loved him, but his hatred to the world forced her to choose between dark and light.

Her mind chose the light, but her heart chose the dark. Her heart chose him, but she wouldn't allow it. Christine sighed and stood up from the chair, placing the rose to her chest. She took step after step around the room, gazing dreamily around at nothing.

"Beating, calming,

heart of yearning maiden…"

She didn't want to feel this way at all. She was about to get married, yet she was thinking of another man. What to do, what to do…

Christine could merely grin with bitterness and close her eyes.

"Dreaming, praying

for hope within the silence.

Leave that dream to be

let my past stop haunting me…

The Phantom… who steals my heart each night

Forever with the music of the night."

Christine sighed again and brushed her lips gently against the petals of the rose. She stood up but her eyes remained fixed on it. She smiled, glancing for a second at the door where she would leave to marry Raoul. She smiled again at the rose.

"To Raoul," she muttered. She stared down at her bare right hand, the hand in which he would place her wedding ring on.

"To Raoul… I give him my hand." Christine looked back at the rose in her other hand, the black ribbon. Sadness overwhelmed her once again and a tear fell from her eye into the blossom's core. She closed her eyes and pressed the rose to her cheek, inhaling the fragrance, the memories of him. She turned her face away to hide her tear-filled eyes for a moment, as if ashamed to cry in the flower's presence.

When ready, Christine once again looked back at it, but this time she smiled through the tears. She kissed the rose tenderly.

"But to you…" She placed a hand over her chest. "… I give my heart."

She bent down and picked up her bouquet, placing the most beautiful red rose in the very centre of it. She beamed and headed over to the door. As she reached down for the handle, her eyes again locked with the rose. She sighed sadly again and stopped, knowing this meant she would walk into her new life forever. She brushed the flower against her cheek again as one last melody left her lips.

"You alone I give my love tonight

Forever… with the music of the night."

Christine smiled to herself, and without another word, she escaped through the door, closing it silently behind her.

"Goodnight, Erik," she murmured.

"Goodnight, but not goodbye."

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**I'****m a little unhappy with the lyrics at the end, since I couldn'****t find anything reasonable to rhyme with 'night'. :( **

**I hope you liked it!**


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